The Lethus Dragon is a horror that stems from places with strong negative energy, a body blacker than a Black Dragon that is wreathed in horrible black smoke. They are the evilest of dragons, and roam in places where death wanders, and where the dead themselves are ferried over. Some live in the cursed waters of the rivers Lethe, Styx and Phlegethon, the first from which they derive their name. Their most powerful attacks are not so much the weapons of their breath, but infernal screeches that rend the mind itself.

Lethus dragons have foregone the majestic effigies of their Chromatic brethren, and are more warped, grotesque exemplars of the species of True Dragons. The oldest of them live unnaturally long, and they become unnaturally powerful. The first 6 categories are considered non-epic, and the last 6 are considered epic dragons.

Lethus dragons are first and foremost guardians of the places of the dead, and despite their vile nature, they are renowned for their indifference to pleas. By the consent of a lethus dragon, a specific soul may be restored and returned from the dead, but dealing with one of these creatures is very dangerous. Approaching a lethus dragon with the purpose of releasing an ally's soul from the dead without having a proper bargaining chip is a death sentence. Furthermore, lethus dragons delight in just finding out how far people are willing to go for their friends, a mindset that the dragon both loathes and respects.

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A Lethus dragon’s natural weapons and any weapons it wields are treated as evil-aligned as well as magic (wyrmling – adult) or epic (mature adult – great wyrm) for the purpose of overcoming damage reduction.

Aside from possessing the natural weapons, abilities and traits innate to all true dragons, Lethus dragons have the following unique qualities.

Breath Weapon (Su): The Lethus dragon has one type of breath weapon, for lack of a better word (as it's a psionic attack). It functions like an ultrablast attack that is projected in a cone of normal length for a dragon's breath weapon and with the associated damage in Table: Lethus Dragons by Age. A Lethus dragon's breath weapon passes through anything, even walls of force or similar warding effects. This means that the breath weapon passes straight through cover, total concealment and doesn't require line of effect. The DCs associated apply to Will saves for half damage.

Enhanced Magic (Su): Within the confines of a Lethus dragon's body, magics with either the Darkness or Death descriptor are empowered and maximized, without requiring a higher level spell slot. spell-like abilities based on spells with those descriptors are also enhanced.

Profane Protection (Ex): The Lethus dragon's body is protected by a very vile protective shroud, bestowing upon it a profane bonus to its Armor Class equal to its Charisma modifier. A Lethus dragon also gains this bonus to all initiative checks.

Shadow Walk (Su): Lethus dragons have a profound understanding of the shadow plane. This ability functions like the spell, but the dragon can precisely control its destination and the ability functions more like a short range jump or teleport effect, as it creates instantaneous travel from one place to another place on the same plane (as long as said plane is coterminous with the shadow plane). The dragon can use his shadow walk ability for short range transportation, in order to throw its enemies off during battle. Furthermore, it can use Shadow Walk everywhere on planes coterminous with the shadow plane, using it's own body which is perpetually wreathed in smoky black shadow as a medium. A Lethus dragon may use shadow walk to jump every 1d4 rounds. Maximum jump distance depends on the dragon's age category.

Table: Lethus Dragon and Shadow Walk

Age

Max. Distance

Wyrmling

50 ft.

Very Young

100 ft.

Young

200 ft.

Juvenile

300 ft.

Young Adult

400 ft.

Adult

600 ft.

Mature Adult

800 ft.

Old

1,000 ft.

Very Old

1,500 ft.

Ancient

2,000 ft.

Wyrm

3,000 ft.

Great Wyrm

1 mile

Spells: Lethus dragons cast spells as a sorcerer of their effective caster level.

Immunities (Ex): The Lethus dragon cannot be harmed or negatively affected by energy drain, death effects and damage that stems directly from negative energy thanks to its origins on the negative energy plane.

Enhanced Magic (Ex): Within the confines of a Lethus dragon's body, magics with either the Darkness or Death descriptor are empowered and maximized, without requiring a higher level spell slot. spell-like abilities based on spells with those descriptors are also enhanced.